Humidifier



Patented Aug. 19, 1941 HUMIDIFIER Marco F. Irwin,v Toronto, Ontario, Canada Application May 13, 1939, serial No.

In Canada May 19, 1938Y 4 Claims.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide a simple and eifective means for supplying moisture to the air being circulated in an apartment through a medium of hot water or steam radiators and to devise a construction of device which may be readily placed within the radiator loops so that an extensive area of a water-bearing sheet of material will be subjected to the vapourizing inuence of the heat from the radiator coils, and air Will circulate readily past both sides of the sheet to pick up the vapour generatedl and circulate it throughout the room.

A further and important object is to devise a structure in which the `weight of the heavy water container, which is necessarily arranged outside of the radiator, is effectively `counterbalanced and obviates the necessity of "any fastening means to secure the device in place.

A still further object is to ensure a uniform distribution of water to the evaporator sheet.

The principal features of the invention consist `in the novel arrangement of a Water-bearing trough leading from a cup for supporting and I sealing a` water container, said trough supporting a sheet of absorbent material which extends thereabove and is spaced from the bottom of the trough through a conduit which feeds the water throughout its length from the feed cup, there being a counter-balancing weight arranged at the end of the trough spaced from the Water container.

In the accompanying drawing,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a radiatorillustrating the applicationof my invention thereto.`

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective detail of the humidier, showing the trough for supporting the evaporator sheet partly broken away.

Figure 3 is `an enalrged sectional detail taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a small diagrammatic view illustrating the counter-balancing feature of the device.

Figure 5 is a sectional detail illustrating the water seal of the water container.

Many diiferent forms of humidilers have been devised for placing within the coils of a radiator, but it has been found that it is important for devices of this class that they be made as simple as possible with practically no working parts so that they may be handled by the ordinary house- Wife.

Further, their simplicity to be successful must be such as to require little or no attention other than that of replenishing the water supply.

`The present invention has been devised to overcome the dilculties hitherto experienced.

On reference to the accompanying drawing, the structure comprises a cup I which is preferably formed ofspun metal and has a cylindrical bottom portion 2 into which the neck end of the water container 3 is inserted.

The container 3 is preferably a glass bottle which is tted with a sealed cap Il which is provided with a quick-threading flange 5 so that it may be readily removed and attached.

The cap 4 is providedwith a pair of holes 6 and l, and in the hole 'I there is arranged a short tube 8 which `forms a water seal when the bottle is inverted and inserted in the cup I.

A long, narrow trough 9 is soldered or other- Wise secured to the outside of the cylindrical portion 2 of the cup I. This trough is preferably formed by simply bending a sheet of copper or other suitable metal into U-shape. Water is fed to the trough through a hole I0 in the side wall of the cup I which is arranged a slight distance above the bottom of the trough.

At the end of the trough farthest from the cup I is arrangedv an upright member II preferably formed of a piece of sheet metal bent into U-shape. This is inserted into the end of the trough and securely soldered, thus sealing the end of the trough.,

Within the upright member Il is placed a strip of lead I2 which forms a counte'rpoise to the weight of the water container when the-device is placed in a radiator. 4

It Will be readily understood that when the trough-shape member is inserted between the loops of the radiator, as illustrated in Figure 1, the cup and container 3 must extend some distance beyond the support of the cross bar of the radiator loops and as thequantity of water in `the container is vof considerable weight it would,

unless the inner end of the trough were fastened in some way, tilt the device, and fastening means is dispensed with by the use of the counterbalance weight I2.

A U-shape metal strip` I3 is inserted into the trough 9 adjacent to the cup end and soldered in position and this member, together with the edges of the upright strip I I, form vertical guides to support the evaporator sheet I4 which is preferably in the nature of a paper stock which will readily absorb Water and will,.by capillary attraction, carry Water upwardly from the trough y to its uppermost extremity.

A narrow protector strip l5 of sheet metal extends between the uprights II and I3 and is secured therein by means of short lugs I6 forming part of the upright members which are simply bent over the top strip to hold it in place after the evaporator sheet is placed in position. As these end strips are made of copper the lugs may be readily bent outward to remove the top strip I when it is desired to replace the evaporator sheet, and when the fresh sheet has been placed into position and the top strip placed thereon the lugs may be again bent back to hold it in place.

It is extremely desirable that the water from the container be fed throughout the entire length of the trough so that it will keep the trough filled to the desired level and maintain the bottom edge of the evaporator sheet immersed at all times and in order to accomplish this result short lengths of tubes I'I are placed in the bottom of the trough to permit the water to flow freely therethrough and form a substantial support for the bottom edge of the evaporator sheet.

It has been found by extensive use that this device will, when placed Within a radiator, effect the evaporation of a remarkable quantity of water in a given time. It is arranged in the ,most effective zone with a large area of the evaporator sheet exposed on both sides. It vaporizes the water on its surface and the upward ow of air through the radiator is not impeded by the narrow structure. The air flows past the wetted vapour-producing surface and picks up the moisture as rapidly as it is vaporized, thus carrying the moisture upward in the room and distributing it throughout its entire area.

The structure is simple; it is easily manufactured and when completed is strong and presents an attractive appearance. To put it into operation it is merely necessary to slip it into the end of a radiator coil, ll the bottle, place the cap thereon and invert it into the cup I. The Water immediately flows through the hole I8 and throughout the length of the bottom trough and is immediately absorbed and carried to the topI of the evaporator sheet.

In the event of the evaporator sheet becoming dirty through the accumulation of dust thereon, or should it swell or become ineffective, it is simply necessary to withdraw the device, remove the topbar, lift out the evaporator sheet and replace it in the manner described.

YWhat I claim as my invention is:

Y l. A humidifierl comprising a cup to receive and hold a Water container, a U-shaped metal strip secured to and extending laterally from said cup and having communication with the interior 'thereof through a hole in the'cup, a U-shaped .metal strip secured in an upright position at the end of the trough farthest from the cup and sealing the end of the trough, a lead strip inserted in said upright U-shaped member, an upright support arranged in said trough adjacent to the cup end, and an evaporator sheet having its bottom edge supported in said trough and its ends supported by said upright members.

2. A humidifier comprising a cup member adapted to support a water container having an opening through the side wall, a U-shaped metal strip having one end secured to said cup and enclosing said opening, forming a trough adapted to receive and support an evaporator sheet, and a pluralityr of short tubular members placed in the bottom of the trough forming a means for supporting the evaporator sheet above the bottom thereof and being spaced apart to provide unobstructed access of the water to said evaporator sheet.

3. A humidifier comprising a U-shaped strip of sheet metal forming a trough, a cup to receive a water container secured to and closing one end of said trough, said cup having a hole therethrough leading into said trough, a U-shaped sheet metal strip secured in said trough above the bottom thereof adjacentto said cup and extending vertically upward therefrom, said U-shaped strip having a lug extension at the top, a LJ-shaped strip of metal arranged at the opposite end of said trough and sealed therein closing the end thereof and extending vertically upward therefrom, said latter member having a lug extension at the top, a metal weight of lesser width than the latter U-shaped strip inserted in said strip leaving a pair of vertical flanges, a sheet of absorbent material inserted between the flanges of the two upright strips and having its bottom edge resting in the trough, and a U-shaped metal strip arranged in inverted position over the top edge of said sheet of absorbent material and resting within the flanged edges of the vertical upright members and secured by the lug extensions thereof.

4. In a humidifier of the type -comprising a trough adapted to receive and support an evaporator sheet, a cup secured at one end of the trough having an opening leading thereto, and a water container having a water seal in said cup, the combination therewith, of a weight arranged at the end of the trough farthest from said cup capable of counter-balancing the weight of the water container when charged with Water, said counter-balance weight comprising a narrow strip of lead secured in an upright position to the end of the trough farthest from the water container cup whereby it presents the maximum counter-balancing effect with the minimum obstruction of the trough, the narrow strip formation of the counter-balance enabling its insertion in the confined space between the respective sections of a radiator.

MARCO F. IRWIN. 

